Wow! Omg I'm so embarressed about how long it's been since this story was updated. But here it is another chapter for anyone out there that's still reading it.

Thanx to everyone that read the last chapter this chapter is deadicated to you for your support and your pateince.

Disclaimer: I Don't own Old Magic I only wish I did.

Now without any furhter to say... On with the show...

Memories

Chapter Eight: Kate

I woke in a haze of dizziness and as conscious thought returned to me I felt nausea claw up my throat. I turned on my side and wretched onto the floor. There was nothing into my stomach to come up so I spat the nasty taste away and wiped my mouth. The dizziness made the room sway but more than that the room was unknown to me.

Immediately confusion swamped my senses. Where the hell was I? More importantly how in the hell had I got there in the first place?

"Jarrod?" I whispered. There was no answer I hadn't really expected one since I couldn't feel him nearby but with feeling so weak I hadn't been sure my magic would be reliable. "Jarrod?" I whispered. "Oh god where are you?"

I sat up on the floor and felt the world tilt horribly again. I felt blood trickling down my throat and had to fight against the instinct to instantly gag. I swallowed and winced at the copper taste. I waited until the nausea abated and it took longer than I had anticipated. Then I tried to stand.

A mistake if I'd ever made one. As I'd tried to stand a wave of dizziness and debilitating nausea crashed over me and forced me back to the floor. My head spun and made me even more disorientated.

I gagged and spat blood onto the floor. Bloody hell where was I? I knew I couldn't just stay on the floor so I forced myself into a sitting position and as I concentrated on that simple movement it suddenly dawned on me where I was and what had happened. I closed my eyes as the pain and dizziness hit me again and the gravity of the situation I was in hit me like a tonne of bricks.

How in the hell was I meant to get out of this one? I didn't even know where I was or which way we'd gone to even have the vaguest idea. I gritted my teeth against another wave of nausea.

Oh, god I was so going to puke. This time I was actually going to puke. I bowed my head and wretched spitting more blood onto the floor. I had no idea how I was going to do it but I knew I had to try.

And it made it worse because I had no idea where I was. "Oh God Jarrod where are you when I need you?" I moaned. That in itself made me stop I had never needed anyone else I was used to being the social outcast but in the time I had known Jarrod I had grown to know him, value him as a friend and maybe.. More than that. We worked well as a team and not for the first time I realised that I cared about him more than I had anyone else, save Jillian.

Looking around the room gave me no clues as to where the hell I was but I had a sinking feeling I might know. I suspected that a particular type of magic had been used and if that was the case I was just slightly screwed. Balthazar had done his job well, and I suspected I was in some sort of dumping ground for demons, somewhere they could move freely.

But if that were true then any hope of me finding a way for me to escape was kind of well… screwed. I was screwed. No other way to describe it.

What I had to figure out now though was why me? The demons had hinted that whoever they were working had intimate knowledge of me and perhaps Jarrod, but that didn't make sense. No one was aware what Jarrod was, his powers too new, powerful? Yeah without a doubt but too knew to have drawn that kind of attention yet.

I just didn't understand it. Jillian and I had the reputation of witches in Ash Peak but neither Jillian nor I had done any magic to have us on the radar for such powerful evil beings such as these. I was so confused and thinking about it was making my head hurt. A lot.

Jarrod and I had done some powerful magic by returning to the past to fix the curse that had been on Jarrod's family since the time of Thorntyne Keep, but we had rid the world of Ranuk the Sorcerer and there was no one to know we had. Other than Jillian and those at Thorntyne Keep but they were long dead.

Long dead and without the powers that Jarrod himself possessed. What the hell had we got ourselves into? I just didn't know. But whatever it was I was in no position to fight it alone although I wished I could.

I was worried though. Demons had the ability to move between their world and ours and I was praying to every god I could think of that they hadn't jumped with me otherwise I would never escape.

Not without their help anyway and that was something that definitely wasn't going to happen anytime this century, or the one following it.

I'd left clues for Jarrod to track even though if I was honest I didn't want him following me. I didn't want him in danger. He meant more to me than I dared even think about and that alone scared me. How could I expect him to follow me here? This was why I'd wanted to stay behind when I'd been in the past. I hadn't wanted him to get hurt. I wanted him to live. To get back to the present and enjoy life.

But I should have known better, he hadn't left me. And although I couldn't feel him near by I knew better than to think he was going to leave me. But the last thoughts I had of him weren't good ones and my heart hurt to think him hurt. I'd find a way to hurt the demons permanently if they'd hurt him. I didn't care if it took all the strength I had.

I began to wonder, as my head started to clear slightly how I was going to get out of this. So far no one had been to see me, and I had no idea how much time had passed since I'd last seen Jarrod and the complete chaos the demons had created taking me from the party.

I looked around the room and shuddered when I realised just how much it reminded me of the cell I had had in the past and that thought wasn't exactly comforting to me. I pushed those thoughts to the back of my mind for the time being, they would do me no good in the position I currently found myself in.

I pushed up off the floor again determined to at least sit up without gagging although this time I was more careful. The nausea and dizziness were nasty enough that I had no wish to repeat again.

I closed my eyes and took some deep calming breaths bracing my hands on the floor to get ready to push myself up. I was tempted to remain on the floor and try and sleep blocking out everything but that wouldn't help me. It would only mean I wasn't alert when they came back. And I needed to be.

I took another deep breath and opened my eyes slowly waiting until they focused before starting to move. I could already feel the nausea moving to grip me again but this time I was ready for it. I moved slowly, carefully and swallowed although my dry throat wasn't helping matters there wasn't really a lot I could do about that.

I managed to sit up right and scooted back against the wall to offer myself some sort of report. I could see double of stuff, two bared windows instead of one and the walls of my cell danced in circles round me taunting me and making me feel the worst kind of motion sickness.

Whatever they'd done to me they'd done a good job of it. I felt blood at the back of my throat again and had no choice but to spit again leaving a copper taste in my mouth that did nothing for my nausea.

"Slowly Kate." I whispered to myself. I needed to be at least half conscious and half sat up for when they came back. I needed to be in some sort of state to get any information I could. I was forcing back another wave of nausea and berating the walls for running circles round me when I heard voices in the halls outside my room.

Immediately I fought to straighten myself out as best I could. I needed to be awake. I needed…

"Mistress are you sure this is a good idea?" A voice cut into my thoughts. I recognised that as Balthazar I snarled if it was the last thing I did I'd find a way to get him back for doing this to me. For hurting Jarrod. I'd make him pay. He'd regret hurting me and mine. I was kind of astounded by the turn my thoughts had taken but not ashamed of them. They were true. I'd make him pay.

I would.

"I don't think I asked for your counsel Balthazar." Said a voice. I frowned. That was a female voice. That I certainly hadn't expected although looking at my predicament I hadn't really known what to expect.

"But Mistress…" Balthazar said.

"Enough. Now come we must see that our young guest has settled in." Definitely a female voice and one that was vaguely familiar I thought.

I didn't know how that could be I didn't know. But the voice, there was no mistaking the fact I heard it before. How was that possible? It was the first time I'd come up against evil such as Balthazar who would be so powerful that he would willingly work with them and more importantly show them respect the way he seemed to be showing this woman?

I heard the footsteps get closer though I couldn't see out of my cell a solid oak door stood in my way. It only did more to make my fear of being trapped more severe but with my captors growing closer I swallowed it back.

I heard the footsteps stop just outside my door and a heavy set of iron keys be pushed into the lock and then the door swung inward. I grimaced I was pleased I'd forced myself to move the door probably would have hit me.

I'm sure that was what they had hoped. Too bad. I looked up as three people stepped inside I recognised the first two. Balthazar smirked at me and bowed. "Lady Katherine, so nice to have you as our guest. I'm sure your lover will not mind."

"Your hospitality leaves something to be desired." I said my throat horse from misuse and thirst though I'd be damned if I let them know that. "Yes," Balthazar said bowing mockingly to me, "I'm sure a lady such as yourself would think so." "However your current rooms where not my choosing."

I said nothing to that. The second person to enter the room was also recognisable. He had been with Balthazar in the raid and I was starting think that perhaps he was Balthazar's second. "Pleasure to meet you Lady Katherine." He said a smirk on his lips and a look in his eyes I not only didn't like but I feared. I discreetly moved back against the wall but I knew he had caught it when he smirked.

"Ahh fear not lady I'm sure we will get well acquainted soon." I said nothing careful to keep my fear from my face, forcing my face into an expressionless mask. Which almost immediately fell apart when I spotted the last person in the room.

She was most definitely female. And I recognised her. I felt my jaw drop to the floor as she grinned at me.

"Lady Katherine. I'm so pleased you could join me."

Shock held me speechless, it couldn't be. I had to be sicker than I'd thought... there was no way. How? I opened my mouth but nothing came out. All the while my captor grinned at me with mocking eyes. Gradually my surprise leaked away to leave only anger. Anger that was dangerously close to taking over my senses and making me do something really stupid.

But in that moment I didn't care.

"YOU!" I yelled my voice horse and echoing round the cell.